Jen Russum

My Ode to the Bouncing Blueberry

My Ode to the Bouncing Blueberry

Oh Blueberry, how you loved to bounce around townYou would take me for a drive when I was feeling downYou were with me in high school and throughout college tooWe went on road trips, more than a fewYou endured Seattle rains and the hot Texas sunYou carried all my friends and provided tons of funYour glove compartment carried a hair brush that made the perfect micFor singing Mariah Carey, Amy Grant and all the songs my friends likeYou were a car full of laughter, long talks and a few tearsYou were my closest companion for about eight years Not that you were perfect, for you liked to rebelYou got your "bouncing" name for putting me through hellOne trip to the mechanic, two, three, fourThere was always something wrong with you; you never were a boreYour alternator liked to break like every single yearBut always one day after the warranty, it made me shed a tear One day there was a CRASH and you were gone in a flashI said my goodbyes, and I scrounged up my cashI was ready to move on to a big girl carOne with four doors and power windows to take me near and farNow your species is endangered, and sights of your relatives are so rareWhen I saw your cousin last week, I could not help but stareAlthough I have replaced you, and I've happily moved on,I snapped this picture to remember my first car, long goneOh, Bouncing Blueberry, though your days are throughI will never forget my little Ford Escort ZX2 ... Read more

Pork Parmigiana Sliders

Pork Parmigiana Sliders

First of all, let me introduce you to my favorite cooking/recipe blog. Jessie Heaviland is the author/chef behind Bites, and she is my go-to girl for menu planning and new recipes. I also like P-Dub, of course, and I love that you can find recipes based on ingredients you already have around your home on Allrecipes (Did you guys know about this feature? Very helpful if you ask me!), but in my book, Bites wins. Here is another great dinner idea I got from Bites, with a few of my own modifications, of course. This was Justin's FAVORITE meal while he was visiting us, and I cooked quite a bit while he was here. PORK PARMIGIANA SLIDERS Ingredients: 1 pork tenderloin, sliced thin and poundedSalt and pepperFlour2 eggsBreadcrumbs (plain or Italian Seasoned)Parsley and/or Fresh BasilAbout 1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided2 garlic cloves, mincedOlive oil or canola oil, for frying1 ball fresh mozzarella, sliced (or a cup of shredded mozzarella if you are lazy like me)1 cup tomato sauce (or spaghetti sauce)Italian seasoningSlider rolls Instructions:Warning: This recipe calls for lots of hand/raw meat contact... Cut the pork tenderloin into slices about 1 inch thick and pound. I cut my tenderloin into ten patties, placed them in a big freezer plastic bag and pounded them with the can of tomato sauce, because that is how Pioneer Woman taught me to do it. I don't have one of those meat tenderizer thingamabobs... Dip pork patties into flour mixed with a little salt and pepper. Beat eggs in a shallow dish with a splash of water. Dip cutlets in egg wash. Dredge cutlets in breadcrumbs mixed with parsley and/or basil, half the parmigiana cheese, salt, pepper and garlic. (I added basil to this recipe, because Mr. Basil, my fresh basil plant now sits on my kitchen window sill and I couldn't resist using my fresh herbs for the first time. I think it was a good decision!) To complete the dipping process, I got my three bowls (flour, egg, and crumbs) lined up in row with a plate at the end, so I could dip, dip, dip and place each breaded pork patty on the plate when I was finished. It worked really well. Introducing: Mr. Basil! My fingers after the dipping process. Gross! But I'm okay with it. Ready to fry! Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties and fry each side until golden brown. I found it took 3-5 minutes per side. Remove and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Meanwhile I toasted the buns...for fun. Add some tomato sauce to the frying pan. If you are lazy, you can use a half a jar of spaghetti sauce. I used a can of plain tomato sauce and stirred about a tablespoon of Italian seasoning and two shakes of garlic powder into it. Add cooked cutlets back to the pan and top with a little grated parm and a slice (or grated) mozzarella. Turn off heat, but leave pan covered on the stove for a few minutes to  melt the cheese. Serve on Slider rolls and voila! ... Read more

Salemarked

Salemarked

Move over Pinterest! There's a new kid in town! Okay, not really. I don't want Pinterest to move anywhere. I love it. But I found something just about as awesome. Salemarked. It works kind of like Pinterest (with the bookmarklet thingy-majig), but instead of just collecting your inspirations, it tells you when your inspirations go on sale! Because let's be honest, I can't afford many of the things I pin to my boards on Pinterest. I'm a grad student. My yearly stipend barely reaches double digits... so the hubs supports us, which he does quite well, but I can't just be out buying every Anthropologie dress that catches my eye. Enter salemarked. This website allows you to mark items all over the web that you would like to buy and you get to enter a price you would like to buy them for. Then salemarked tells you if the product goes on sale and drops down into the price range you want. For example, I recently bought this pair of Paige Premium Denim Straight Leg Jeans at the Nordstrom Half Yearly sale, but Micah made me return them...  he really wasn't into me buying $109 jeans at the beginning of the summer that we are trying to buy a house for some strange reason. However, I love them. So now they are marked on my salemarked profile, so I can see if they will ever drop below $100. Probably not until they reach Nordstrom Rack, but I am intent on finding them! The site is fairly new, so not all stores have been added to their database yet, but I'm sure they will be soon. Still waiting on Ann Taylor Loft (shorts!) and Crate and Barrel (mini parker bowls!). Have fun with this new website!!! ... Read more